Halls of Montezuma (1951)

83% of critics liked it
(6 reviews)
50% of users liked it
(1,462 ratings)

In Halls of Montezuma, Richard Widmark stars as Lt. Carl Anderson, a former schoolteacher who serves as a no-nonsense Marine officer during WW II. Anderson leads his patrol to a Japanese-controlled island, where the enemy has set up an experimental rocket base. The patrol's mission is to capture… More In Halls of Montezuma, Richard Widmark stars as Lt. Carl Anderson, a former schoolteacher who serves as a no-nonsense Marine officer during WW II. Anderson leads his patrol to a Japanese-controlled island, where the enemy has set up an experimental rocket base. The patrol's mission is to capture prisoners for interrogation, which proves a near-insurmountable task given the fact that the Americans are heavily outnumbered. Among the grime-covered Marines are Walter (Jack) Palance, Robert Wagner, Karl Malden, Richard Boone, Skip Homeier and Neville Brand. Jack Webb is a chain-smoking war correspondent, while Reginald Gardiner shows up as an aristocratic--but very tough--British officer. ~ Hal Erickson, Rovi

Rating, Runtime: Unrated, 1 hr. 53 min.
Directed By: Lewis Milestone
Written By: Michael Blankfort
Genres: Drama, Action & Adventure, Classics

In Theaters: Jan 1, 1950 Wide
On DVD: Nov 6, 2001

Critic Reviews

Steve Crum, Kansas City Kansan
How can flag waving, the Marines, and Richard Widmark go wrong?
Scott Weinberg, Apollo Guide
Although the movie grinds down to a snail's pace on occasion, there's more than enough patriotic gunplay for a WWII buff to get behind.
Walter Chaw, Film Freak Central
I thought of maverick Samuel Fuller and his no-nonsense 'tabloid' approach to cinema.
Dennis Schwartz, Ozus' World Movie Reviews
The film doesn't pretend to be more than a routine WW11 war film reflecting the political mood of when it was made.

Critic ratings and reviews powered by RottenTomatoes.com

Fresh (60% or more critics rated the movie positively)

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Featured Audience Ratings

Randy T

Remember when Hollywood depicted war as glorious and romantic? This is Richard Widmark storming the beaches of pacific islands, taking out Jap pillboxes with a machine gun in one hand and a pistol in the other. This is navy corpsman Karl Malden patching up wounded comrades and… More
Remember when Hollywood depicted war as glorious and romantic? This is Richard Widmark storming the beaches of pacific islands, taking out Jap pillboxes with a machine gun in one hand and a pistol in the other. This is navy corpsman Karl Malden patching up wounded comrades and private Jack Palance lobbing grenades from a foxhole. This isn't just a post-WWII action film, it's a God damned two hour recruiting poster!
xGary X

Lewis Milestone made some great war films, but this WWII drama about a marine platoon commanded by Richard Widmark doesn't measure up to his best. The action is all smoke and noise, with little pause for any character development and the supporting cast overact their badly… More
Lewis Milestone made some great war films, but this WWII drama about a marine platoon commanded by Richard Widmark doesn't measure up to his best. The action is all smoke and noise, with little pause for any character development and the supporting cast overact their badly melodramatic, overly stereotypical roles to a rather cringeworthy degree (Jack Palance's performance in Batman is comparatively understated compared to this!) The technique of using flashbacks to contrast the soldier's pre-war lives is also clumsy, and Widmark too often looks more like a social worker dishing out Werther's originals than a battle hardened lieutenant. The lack of humanity in the script is highlighted particularly in a scene where a tank sprays napalm on Japanese positions with no thought or mention of it's victims, as the marines look on cheerfully as if they're watching a sunday afternoon barbecue. It does have moments; particularly in the scenes involving the Japanese prisoners, but as a whole it's too simplistic and cliched.

Cast

            Richard Widmark as Lt. Carl Anderson

            Jack Palance as Pidgeon Lane

            Robert Wagner as Coffman

            Karl Malden as Doc

            Jack Webb as Correspondent Dickerman

            Richard Hylton as Cpl. Stuart Conroy

            Reginald Gardiner as Sgt. Johnson

            Richard Boone as Lt. Col. Gilfilan

            Skip Homeier as Pretty Boy

            Don Hicks as Lt. Butterfield

            Bert Freed as Slattery

            Neville Brand as Sgt. Zelenko

            Marion Marshall as Nurse

            Martin Milner as Private Whitney

            Philip Ahn as Nomura

            Howard Chuman as Capt. Makino

            Frank Kumagai as Romeo

            Fred Coby as Capt. McCreavy

            Paul Lees as Capt. Seaman

            Fred Dale as Pharmacist's Mate

            Chris Drake as Frank

            George Conrad as Corpsman

            Harry McKim as Radio Man

            Bob McLean as Marine Guard

            William H. Hawes as Paskowicz

            Roger McGee as Davis

            Clarke Stevens as Recruit

            Helen Hatch as Aunt Emma

            Michael Road as Ship's Captain

            Richard Allan as Pvt. Stewart

            Harry Carter as Boatswain's Mate

            Rollin Moriyama as Fukado

            Jack Lee as Courier
See full cast